We knew that the Chicago Bears were going to look into drafting a wide receiver. However, they waited until the sixth round to do so. Dazz Newsome was not the top name on every team’s board, but he does provide value and could be a great fit with the Chicago Bears.
If you are just learning about Dazz Newsome now that he is a member of the Bears, here are five stats that will help introduce you to this prospect.
5. Return Game Value
It looks Khalil Herbert was drafted with the intention that he could be a kick returner. The intentions of Dazz Newsome could be to get him on the field as a punt returner. Over his career, he has 48 punt returns for 535 yards and a touchdown. That is a lot of experience with pretty strong success.
Tarik Cohen has typically returned punts but is coming off of an ACL injury. Beyond that, getting him off of return duties may open him up a bit to be used more as a running back in the offense.
Nonetheless, we know that special team value goes a long way. Riley Ridley cannot get a helmet on gamedays because he provides no value on special teams. Even if Newsome does not return punts he has the ability to run down punts and kicks as a gunner. For depth, this could get him a job.
4. Dazz Newsome is Slot only
Do not expect Dazz Newsome to line up outside very often. For his career, Dazz Newsome has run 1,811 routes. 1,802 of those have come straight out of the slot. Yes, despite three years of production, he has nine snaps lined up outside. It is very clear that he is a slot wide receiver.
This will obviously lead to speculation about Anthony Miller. Miller has been a discussion of trade talks and his name has leaked so much it is hard to say that he will be back. So, can Newsome replace Miller?
At the very least he provides depth to the slot where there is none beyond Miller. Javon Wims and Riley Ridley are outside receivers, and Darnell Mooney barely runs out of the slot either. He is much more straight-line speed than deep. So, whether he is a replacement for Miller or not, he provides the depth that is needed in the slot.
3. Dazz Newsom has questionable Athleticism
If you want to ask why did Dazz Newsome fall so far In the 2021 NFL Draft you do not have to look much further than his size and athleticism. At 5’10”, and 190 pounds you can see why he is a slot-only option. Still, you can pay at that size. The issue is that he does not have much oomph at that size.
Check out his athletic measurements below compared to other wide receivers.
A 4.59 40 yard dash is not a death sentence, but most WRs who run that slow are much bigger than Dazz Newsome is. Still, the rest matches as he has little overwhelming qualities.
His best traits are his vert and broad, but he is below average in those areas as well. Most slot receivers who are slower at least are shiftier and that comes with a good change of direction illustrated in a 3-cone. Newsome has well below-average agility as well.
WR is much more than athleticism, but he is going to be stacked up against bigger and stronger humans than him every snap.
2. Predictive Metrics
Player profiler looks into predictive metrics at the WR position. It is not an exact science, but WRs who check these boxes have a much better shot at success than those who do not. The site adjusts raw athletic numbers for their weight, but this does Dazz Newsome no favors.
He had a 10th percentile speed score, a 35th percentile burst score, and a 7th percentile agility score. There are not many players at his size to have success with those metrics.
Beyond that are his on-the-field metrics. His yards per reception is 13.4 which is the 32nd percentile. His target share was in the 55th percentile, but his dominator rating, which looks at the % of his team’s production is in the 46th percentile. Lastly, his breakout age is 55th percentile, so it is fair to say that he was excelling on an even playing field with his peers.
Still, overall this is not a prospect that has a lot of strong comparisons. Travis Rudolph, Brandon Tate, and Kenbrell Thompkins. Nothing to go crazy over.
1. Not a deep threat
It may be clear by his slot presence and lack of speed, but this is not someone that is going to push the safeties back when he gets onto the field. This is not an indictment, but rather to say that Newsome is going to win closer to the line of scrimmage.
Last season he caught five passes that went over 10 yards in the air. On the other end, he caught 15 screen passes. His average depth of target was 9, which ranked 291st amongst college receivers last year.
According to PFF, he had 21 catches within nine yards, 10 from 10-19 yards, and five deep catches. He had 26 targets within nine yards, 14 10-19, and 11 deep targets. They are not going to stretch the field with him.
Overall, for a sixth-round pick, you should not expect much. Newsome is a great route runner out of the slot, he is reliable, and he can return punts. Asking him to do much more may be stepping out of his range. Still, that has a role in the NFL and with the Chicago Bears.